I'm being picky here. I don't think that any of those players are in the same class as Imran, Hadlee, or even Botham. I'll also throw in Miller, Procter and Kapil Dev. By and large, all the really great allrounders bowl fast for some reason. No offence to Richie.

(OK, I'm technically wrong, but I'm sure people know what I mean)

Faulkner pretty good bat but he was more of a batting all rounder unlike the match winners you mentioned. So I kinda agree with you.

Playing for any other side Faulkner would likely be a batting allrounder, but there's no doubt he was crucial to both his side's batting and bowling. During his career he took more wickets than any South African. Despite being a legspinner opened the bowling in over a third of his matches, and was first or second change for a further half.

Originally Posted by harsh.ag

Moeen killing it. Johnson's being thrashed. Poms going wild. A lady knitting on one of the upper seats.

Not to get off the track, but how is the combination of Len Hutton and Barry Richards as the best ever opening partnership? Hutton was a better technician than Hobbs and Gavaskar I feel, and Richards was like Sehwag with a good technique. Wonderful combo I think. Opinions?

Not to get off the track, but how is the combination of Len Hutton and Barry Richards as the best ever opening partnership? Hutton was a better technician than Hobbs and Gavaskar I feel, and Richards was like Sehwag with a good technique. Wonderful combo I think. Opinions?

I can't go past Jack Hobbs as first choice opener. I'm not sure how Hutton was a better technician, from what I've read, Hobbs was an absolute master batsman.

Playing for any other side Faulkner would likely be a batting allrounder, but there's no doubt he was crucial to both his side's batting and bowling. During his career he took more wickets than any South African. Despite being a legspinner opened the bowling in over a third of his matches, and was first or second change for a further half.

Hutton is regarded in many quarters as the most technically correct batsman of his time in the sense of having a sound defence, at the same time having a touch of genius. Hobbs and Hutton are obviously the two best English openers. Most people would vote for Hobbs and I get it. I do too. Hobbs is much more like the minimalist defence and footwork model that Bradman, Tendulkar, Barry Richards and Graeme Pollock (among many others) use and which is more attacking (and more awesome to watch) than the Hutton, Gavaskar, Dravid style of batting. Hutton was reserved in his showmanship, and took his role as a defensive opener seriously, having been under the tutelage of Sutcliffe in his early years. Hobbs is the superior batsman in standalone without a doubt, but I guess my question was basically along the lines that if you had to reserve a place for Barry Richards in the XI, who would be an ideal partner for him? Sir John Hobbs, who is very much from the same school of batting, or Sir Len Hutton, who might be more complementary.

I don't rate Simpson and Lawry as high as some people on here do, and I've seen that some people here tend to underrate Ponsford, vastly. Always rated Grimmett > O'Reilly.

Simpson has to be looked at slightly differently because of the unique nature of his career. When you look at him only opening the batting, and remove his WSC schism comeback at 40, his average rockets to 55. Ponsford has a fantastic FC and Test record, but I tend to prefer Simpson on the basis of his all-round value - handy legspin on a turner (letting you play 3 quicks if you want) and his unparallelled slip fielding. Plus he could captain.

The corpse with pads I rate less so.

Grimmett definitely had more variety than O'Reilly, but the latter was such a unique legspinner in the pace he delivered it at and the mentality with which he bowled that I've always found it difficult to keep him out.

My Australian XI looks like this:

Bob Simpson

Victor Trumper

Donald Bradman

Greg Chappell

Keith Miller

Steve Waugh

Adam Gilchrist

Alan Davidson

Bill O'Reilly

Dennis Lillee

Glenn McGrath

And it absolutely pains me to leave out the likes of Lindwall, Grimmett, Macartney, Ponting, Border, Harvey et al.

Waugh slots in between Miller and Gilchrist to play the 'Roebuck Role' - preventing Miller from being at the crease with Gilly and trying to outhit him all day.